The Modern Letter Opener from Hannah Martin London Is Now Available.

Hannah Martin of London, known for their elegant and modern jewelry designs, was set the task of reinventing the traditional letter opener by Wallpaper* Magazine earlier this year, as part of their 'Handmade' Issue.



above: sketches and protoypes of the letter opener

They had so many requests to put this into production, they caved under popular demand and have put the beautiful desk accessory into production in three finishes.

Anthracite Grey (solid brass with a grey powder-coated finish):



Intense Navy (solid brass with a navy blue powder-coated finish):



Silver (solid brass with heavy sterling silver plate):



The beautiful modern letter opener goes on sale Friday (tomorrow) at London's Design Museum in Anthracite Grey or Intense Navy. But it's available to purchase NOW at their online site, HannahMartinLondon.com, along with an exclusive sterling silver plated edition.

As with their jewels, this letter opener is handmade from start to finish in London.

The Beautiful Vases, Dogs and Cats of Gary Steinborn and his Venice Clay Studio.

The Venice Clay Studio features the talented ceramic crafts of Los Angeles born artist Gary Steinborn. Inspired by the work of arts and craft factories such as Grueby, Pewabic, Teco and Rookwood, his sculpted animals and artful vases are sensual, modern and appealing. The figurines and tabletop objects combine a zen sensibility with arts and crafts design. Very reasonably priced, any of these pieces make wonderful gifts for others or yourself.




Artfully sculpted Buddha Cats, Buddha Dogs, Polar Bears, Elephants, Pet Urns, Dog and Puppies, Cat and Kittens, incense burners and more come in various sizes and your choice of 24 matte glazes. The sizes range from little puppies and kittens a few inches high up to sculptures and vases thirteen inches tall.

The Dogs:





Buddha Dogs:

The Cats:





Buddha Cats and Incense Burners:



Polar Bears and Elephants:


Dog and Cat Vases:


Dog and Cat Urns:



The Bella Vase ceramics are colorful vases with elegant silhouettes that would be a stunning complement to any interior. Venice Clay studio has several different styles and sizes, all of which are beautiful and some of which are shown below.

Vases:







The Glazes:
All of the artwork is available in 24 matt glaze colors. In addition, the figurines are available in celadon and white crackle finishes:



About the artist:


About Gary Steinborn, in his own words:
"I had my first studio over thirty years ago on the front porch of my family's California bungalow home. Working there on a homemade potter's wheel and sculpting clay by hand when I was a teenager started the journey that led me to a Masters Degree in Art from UCLA.



Growing up in Los Angeles I was exposed multi-cultural influences and all kinds of art. In my work I try to synthesize influences ranging from the heritage of the American crafts movement to funk and pop art. All the pieces I offer at Venice Clay are my original designs. My goal is to produce ceramics that is immaculately crafted, intelligent and humorous - suitable for anything from a modernist to craftsman style homes or personal Zen retreat. "

The Venice Clay Web Site features Venice Clay figurines and Bella Vase ceramics and allows collectors and distributors of Gary Steinborn's artwork to view the entire collection of items and colors available for purchase.

All the figurines and artworks you see in this post are copyrighted designs by Gary and Venice Clay Studio an the images have been used with their permission.

Mouth Watering Gift Wrap. Conceptual Wrapping Paper from Gift Couture.

Sarah Fey and Justin Colt, New York graphic designers and graduates of Penn State University, have conceived of a new way to make your gifts even more desirable.

They've begun a start-up company named Gift Couture that offers coordinated wrapping paper lines, each featuring a unique and original concept. Their introductory design is truly a tasty one.



The Cheeseburger set they chose as the initial project includes 5 different wrapping paper designs; a bun, hamburger, cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes, all of the components of a Cheeseburger.





Each complete set of Cheeseburger wrapping paper will be packaged and include the following:
2 - 27" x 40" Sheets of Bun
1 - 27" x 40" Sheet of Hamburger
1 - 27" x 40" Sheet of Cheese
1 - 27" x 40" Sheet of Lettuce
1 - 27" x 40" Sheet of Tomatoes

In order to get this project and Gift Couture off the ground, they are asking for pre-order funding via kickstarter. This will encourage and enable them to release additional coordinated sets, which will be available online and through retail partners.

Everyone who contributes to their project will be featured on a special contributors section of the upcoming official Gift Couture website. They are also offering individual wrapping paper sheets or complete sets, and their highest backers will each receive one of their hand-made golden cheeseburger trophies (shown below) as a sign of their appreciation!



Order your Cheeseburger gift wrap set and help Sarah and Justin to launch Gift Couture here.